The Luna Trials by Marissa Gilbert

Chapter 73 Blessed

Kai watched as Joran, on the opposite side of the vast clearing, smirked at him and returned to Bjorn’s side, placing his hand on his shoulder and saying something that only made the bear more confident, judging by the looks of it.

“Well, we are utterly f*cked now,” Lachlan said to his King, using the mindlink between the two of them and Aspen. They couldn’t risk demoralising their warriors right before the fight by discussing openly how their chances of winning just dropped significantly.

“Just more bear meat,” Aspen snarled. He was the one ready to charge at any moment and avenge his human legs. The Gamma felt like he had nothing to lose, but everything to gain by killing as many enemies as he could.

“Just a few chosen ones,” Kai reminded them calmly, even though inside he was worried. “They are bigger and stronger, butthey are still mortal. Besides, there is a reason why gods don’t bless everyone all the time. Maybe they aren’t as strong as Riannon and I because they all shared one blessing.”

“Yeah,” Lachlan did not sound confident, “maybe-”

Kai closed his eyes and connected to all of his people at once, knowing that this was the moment they needed to hear from him. He hated giving speeches, and by no means was he good at it, but when duty called, he rose to the occasion once again.

“Remember who we are,” he said, skipping a fancy beginning. It looked like the bears were ready to attack, and he had mere seconds. “We are the true Northerners! We defend our home, our way of life! We shared the North with them; they had their land, they had their ruler, but they were greedy and wanted more. They want what we have, and they want us gone! Like it or not, if we lose today, the Northern and the Western Lycan Kingdoms, the way we know them, will be gone forever. The continent as we know it will be gone

forever! Everything will change, and not for the better. But we have friends, and we have allies. We have eliminated the traitors, and now our lines only have people who will defend your back. We are fighting for what is right and just! Those bears and foxes will go home tonight, and their lands will finally be enough for them because there will be just a few of them left – If any survive at all… We did not start this, but we will finish the war today, whatever it takes us! Even if it takes all of us!”

First, silence greeted him, then a howl of approval emerged somewhere in the lines of wolves. And then another, followed by more and more until all of the Northern lycans howled as one in a battle cry that let their enemies know they’d rather die than give up.

As soon as they were done, more howls erupted from afar, and Kai snapped his head to see more wolves approaching from the

Western Mountains. They were fast and ready to clash with the bears, but they stopped as the pitch-black Royal Lycan stepped forward.

Gideon roared, and his army joined him to let everyone know that the Western Kingdom warriors were here to support the North and defend their own borders. This would be the first time in many years that the West and the North would fight back to back.

The bears roared in response, foxes snarling at their sides. However, soon the cats arrived and took the stage. Things of beauty, there were so many kinds of them. Lions, pumas, leopards, lynxes, in all shades of furs. All graceful and deadly. And all were ready to tear their adversaries to pieces. No one dared to underestimate them because their battle skills were legendary.

Bjorn was watching his enemies gather and wondering where Savannah had gone, secretly hoping she was far away, where she would be safe and sound until he came for her when everything was done.

He hated Kai with a passion. Hated him so much that he couldn’t wait to send his men to fight him and to see him and all the other

lycans dead. Even if he’d lose some of his bears and allies, it would be worth it. Kai always had it easy. He always had everything Bjorn longed for. His parents never questioned him, never stabbed him in the eye, never separated him from his sibling. He did not have to earn. bits of approval from his own people, and everything always came easy to the golden boy. While Bjorn had to work hard simply to survive. Everything was denied to him. His birthright, the respect he deserved, and even his mates. Contemplating about his mates, the White Bear King decided that Ingrida made a choice of her own accord while Savannah was deceived from the very beginning and stolen from him. This was something he was going to fix today.

Usually, this was the moment where the final negotiations between the kings could take place, but this time there was nothing to -negotiate about. They all knew why they were there, and they all chose to stay and fight to the death.

did something he had tried to get for the past few years and blessed his army. The wolves

blue, and the second his large paw hit the ground, the withered grass under it covered

his human form, roared loudly,

horde of enhanced shifters

too, but he motioned for them to stay in place. It

earth under their feet shook, the sound echoing through the woods and the mountains surrounding them. It seemed like something changed in the world when the sound died down because one could tell

opponents, It blinded and

his army with a loud growl which each of his

straight into his Royal Lycan form. He wasn’t going to risk it – there was no denying that this was what was

could hear them approaching, but the snow made it almost impossible to see anything. So, when Amarok reached them first, they could barely defend themselves from his icy claws and sharp canines. Kai was destroying them one by one, methodically working through their formation to make way for his lycans. However, this distracted him from keeping up the mist that

mixed all at once. Warm blood was spraying the frosty ground, and lifeless bodies were

found it much harder to defeat them. He was throwing himself into their clusters, breaking them up to help his men, but often sadly watched his people die before he was able to reach them. The lycans were strong, but it was something else to be blessed by a deity. The blessing made the white bears bigger and tougher, the foxes faster and with deadlier canines than usual, the traitorous

Royal Lycan form, crushing whoever was in his way. The divine power was flowing through him. As Amarok, Kai could

instincts. Still, it was far from enough, and he saw lycan after lycan falling before his eyes while there was nothing he

watching the battle from above, hoping that they had made the right call about the Luna Squad. Every fighter was important now and if she was

she could hear the howls and the roars of the bloody fight. She could imagine what her mate had to

sister-in-law’s shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “If anything, he is the last one I am

ears, and this was when a cruel sneer painted

perks of having her photographic memory was that she never forgot anything. So when her husband and brother were building a strategy for today, it was she who remembered the catacombs of the Lost City which Bjorn’s people loved to use so much. They sealed everything that was connected to the city, but she

Bjorn wouldn’t pass an opportunity for a sneaky

standing right next to the exits of the mountain tunnel. It would be easy to descend on the battleground below from here and

element of surprise was now on their

trying to avoid her, probably having some orders from Bjorn on her account, and she wasn’t below using that to her advantage. She had made her choice, and it wasn’t her fault that Bjorn couldn’t accept it and let it go. She did not owe him anything, and she was happy to accept this little gift from him because her only

King probably did not think that it was important and arranged this ambush more as a habit. Or maybe it was just his backup plan to make one final blow from where they wouldn’t expect it

main battlefield, where her husband and brother were leading their armies against a force greater than anything they had

them off. Savannah knew now that she trusted Elene with her life, and the princess did not disappoint her so far even

bloody scene unveiled before her eyes. Amarok was the only one she noticed at once, relieved that he was alive,

mission, but she couldn’t

influence the fight, but it did. The lycans were far from winning the

She wouldn’t be able